Run Hermione
by HermionexxxDraco
Summary: "'Run Hermione' His yell echoed in her ears and hung in the air as she ran." After the school is ambushed Draco and Hermione are the only two left. They need to overcome their past in order to work together but how can a relationship built on mistrust and resentment ever work? Fear, anger and lust become caught up in a desperate whirlwind of emotions, in the struggle to find love.
1. Chapter 1

"Run Hermione!" His yell echoed in her ears and hung in the air as she ran. She ripped through bushes, ignoring the sharp pain as her clothes ripped, thin streaks of red shooting across her arms. She could hear her breathing fast and sharp in her ears, surely louder than was possible, and her heart pumping furiously as she tore through the dense forest.  
Lights were flashing bright across the dark sky and she screamed as one flashed past her, hitting a rock right in front of her before ricocheting away. Pushing herself on, Hermione dived forward, tearing across the rough path with pebbles tumbling down past her feet as she dislodged them.

She heard a cry behind her as someone fell at her feet, and she dived forward over the body, tumbling down the slope, rolling over and over in the leaves before coming to rest amidst the roots and shrubs. Behind the hill and out of sight raged the battle. Bright flashes of green and red lit up the pale sky that was all she could see between the trees. Her breathing harsh and ragged, she lay, quiet and tense, waiting for someone to come by, friend or foe.  
After the longest while, the sounds gradually faded and the grey sky had darkened. The battle was over; ash gently blew away from the scorched remains, tumbling down into the mud.

With a cough, Hermione rolled out from under the upturned tree she'd been lying under, and slowly got to her feet. Dusting the rough mud off her knees she stared around in amazement. The once beautiful forest was nothing more than a burned out shell of black and brown trees covered by smoke. She stood still, slowly massaging her stiff limbs and rotating her shoulders, trying to get some blood back through her aching limbs.  
Shaking her head to dislodge her tangled thoughts, she ran towards the castle, desperate to find someone, anyone, who she knew. Breaking through the tangled hedges she stopped short. Bricks were ripped up, walls turned to rubble and black smite stains marked the places where curses had hit and rebounded the night before. It was deserted. Where were the bodies? The ministry? The teachers? In the distance she could just make out a crumpled heap on the ground. Hermione's heart leapt and she ran forward, sprinting towards it. It was just a pile of robes. Empty, burned robes. Disappointment and fear filled her like lead as tears sprung to her eyes and she dropped to her knees, sobbing grief spilling through her fingers.

"Granger." The voice was cold with a hint of surprise. She spun round and her eyes rested on the sodden but steady figure of Draco Malfoy. She blinked in surprise as a mix of emotions entered her mind. She'd never liked him; he'd always been a shallow, selfish, annoying brat. Yet, here he was, at the end of the battle. The only person she knew. Would he attack her? What did he want? Nervously, her fingers twitched towards her wand.

Draco's eyes sharpened. Suddenly he twisted round and in a flash his wand was in hand, pointing directly at Hermione's throat.  
"Don't even think about it." he hissed and her arm fell away from her pocket.  
"What is it you want, Malfoy?" she demanded, glaring at him annoyed. His eyes narrowed suspiciously.  
"What do you think I want, Granger? I want to know where the others are." She stared at him in surprise. "I, I don't know." He stared at her uncertainly for a moment then smirked.  
"Well I guess this means we're both screwed." Lowering his wand he began to walk away.  
Hermione blanched. "No, wait a moment!" Stumbling after him he smirked again as she stumbled and then straightened, maintaining as much dignity as she could. Standing in front of him she stood to her full height and raised her chin defiantly.  
"Look. Whether you like it or not, we are the only two left. We _need_ to find the others, or this won't end well for anyone." She glanced back towards the school, "I say we start by getting _help_ and finding a teacher!" Turning back to him she was surprised to find him looking speculative. He glanced up at the school nervously, his eyes flicking up before returning to her face, and shook his head. Suddenly his hand took hold of her wrist before turning away back towards the forest, dragging Hermione with him.

"Hey, watch it! Let _go_!" With a grunt Hermione tugged her arm out of his grip and glared at him furiously. He stood calmly, before sighing infuriatingly, "Look, there's no point going back to the castle, everyone who was there will have fled, and anyone left isn't going to be of any help to us. We need to find help." Hermione stared at him in disbelief, "You're kidding right?" He sighed again, "Granger, do I _look _like I'm joking?" She glared at him. There had to be another way, surely staying at the castle would be the best move. Someone would come, Harry, the ministry of magic, anyone. As if reading her thoughts Draco interrupted.  
"Look, last night was an ambush. I don't know what's going on but I do know that we're in trouble. All of us. The ministry can't help; they've got enough on their hands right now without having to worry about one small school scandal. I don't know where the others are but they won't be here, and you can bet your life that the castle won't stay empty for long. And it's not gonna be filled with friends." He took another step towards the forest edge before turning, "So, come on."  
Hermione frowned, dropping her head into her hands, groaning dramatically before following him, running to catch up. "I know I'm going to regret this."


	2. Chapter 2

They'd been walking for a few hours in silence. Hermione was focusing on keeping her feet moving, she'd never been much into sports, she'd always thought she was more of an indoors girl. Stepping over twisted roots and pulling aside prickly branches of bushes and trees she laughed quietly to herself at just how far from indoors she was, pushing forward across the rough inclines and muddy ground. Draco was walking at a steady pace behind her, simply taking the rough terrain in his stride.

Suddenly Hermione turned.

"Where exactly are we going Malfoy?" His pace didn't falter.

"Away."

She waited, marching beside him.

"We need to get away from the castle. Pretty soon it's going to be overrun with Death eaters." Running slightly to keep up with him and panting slightly from the excursion she pressed on. "How do you know that?"

She waited again, still running beside him, hands on her hips. With a dramatic sigh Draco stopped, part way up the muddy incline, and turned to look at her, looking resigned.

"We're not safe here."He looked her in the eyes and she felt a pang of doubt as she registered the grim look within the muddy emerald.

"The attack yesterday was no accident. It was planned. It wasn't just a random strike on a bunch of students, this was co-ordinated, prepared, and those death eaters had been well trained." He looked down at the floor then back up before groaning. "The more I think about it the worse it seems. This has probably been going on for months, they'll have rounded up anyone dumb enough to stick around and Merlin only knows what they plan to do with them. But whatever it is it's not good."

His gaze intensified suddenly as he looked straight into her eyes. "Like I said Granger, those were trained fighters and that was a strategic attack. We're in trouble. I don't know what's going on and I don't know what they're planning, but whatever it is, it's going to be big."

He turned back and started back up the path, leaving a stunned Hermione in his wake.

As she trudged along behind him Hermione thought back to the previous night. It had just been her Harry and Ron; they'd been sneaking out across the grounds, walking back from Hagrid's hut. It had been a mild night, but the wind had been chilling and her pink sweater and faded jeans weren't quite warm enough to protect her against its icy waves. Despite this they'd still enjoyed the wander round the grounds at night.

It was always beautiful seeing Hogwarts with all the students sound asleep, and the teachers locked up in their studies. The campus would seem to stretch out into a vast, exciting world, but with every inch being a part of home.

The sky had been clear that night she remembered suddenly. The moon shining bright against the dark background, lighting up the path back clearly, and casting everything it could touch in a silver glow.

She shivered, as she recalled Ron, offering her his jacket but she'd shrugged it off. Harry had been talking about something, she couldn't quite remember what, when suddenly they'd heard a crack, like the sound of a twig in surprise they'd scanned round, their eyes already adjusting to the dark, wondering if there was a student out of bounds or perhaps a stray cat that had got in somehow.

And then suddenly Harry had dived on top of the two of them, pulling them down into the undergrowth, as the sky caught fire.

In a moment it had transformed from a calm, tranquil night into a warzone, with spells ricocheting off trees and voices shouting everywhere. She remembered Ron, pulling her away and Harry yelling instructions, telling them to keep down and get to cover.

They'd ran for the trees and, for a moment, the wind had been in her face, pulling her hair aside and across her for-head as she'd turned back to take one last glance at the destruction before her. It was only now that she could take in what she had seen.

Hagrid's hut had been aflame, blazing like a flare against the darkness, and teachers had been furiously defending themselves from dark figures in black cloaks, who had suddenly sprung out of nowhere.

The sounds had been deafening and she could still hear Ron's cry echoing in her ears as he'd tripped, sprawling along the ground, dragging her with him. She'd pulled him up back to his feet but he'd twisted his ankle and could only hobble, with spurts of agony escaping his lips whenever he tried to put too much weight onto it. She'd called out to Harry who had come running, sprinting towards them with spells flying out of his wand as he ran. Together they'd dragged Ron away, shooting curses at the hooded figures and trying to think straight in the blaze of confusion, noise and madness.

And then suddenly she'd been thrown into the air as an explosion caught them all, tearing them away from each other with a thunderous roar that had shaken through her core. She'd landed roughly and, amidst the pain and confusion, all she'd been able to see was darkness and lights, with shouts coming from all directions.

"Run Hermione!" A voice had called out of the darkness and crawling away, Hermione had ran; ran towards the forest, ran out of sight away from the noise and the battle. She hadn't seen where Harry and Ron had ended up but she trusted them, trusted that they would keep each other safe.

Now, as she thought back, fear flooded through her like ice at what might have happened to them. At the time there'd been no time to think, no time to comprehend, but now she could see that Draco was right, the attack had been planned. They'd never had a chance to defend themselves, no one had been prepared, it had just been an average night.

For a moment she wondered if it had been a trap for Harry but then she corrected herself. No one had known they'd been out, it had just been bad luck they'd decided to go out when the attack had happened.

Draco looked at her briefly noticing the way she'd pulled her sweater down so that it covered her hands against the cold, but he said nothing. Realising that she was not going to ever get some sort of chivalry now, especially not from him, she resigned herself to the long walk ahead.

She would tough it out, there wasn't any other way. It was going to be long, and cold and dark and she didn't have any idea where they were going or what she was walking towards, but she knew that going back wouldn't be an option. So she trudged on forward, against the wind, through the mud in silence.

**Thanks so much for thr reviews and favourites and follows. I hope I can match your expectations, and I'm sorry for being slow, I can't promise I'll be the fastest poster but I promise that I'll try never to just stop writing. **

**Please keep reviewing, criticism too, and any ideas or suggestions you would like would be great - I'll try and incorporate them into the story! **

**I'm not too confident about my grammar or the lay out as well so if you have any constructive criticism there too that'd be great! Too many paragraphs? **

**KEEP READING AND REVIEWING :D THIS STORY IS EXCITING ME EVEN AS I WRITE IT! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

They had been walking for several hours and the skies were getting gradually darker. The ground was growing softer, squelching under their feet, as the moisture increased in the air. Hermione was cold, her feet were getting sore and the mud was splattering through her thin trainers, but she refused to give Malfoy the satisfaction of hearing her complain.

It was getting steadily darker and stopping suddenly Draco looked dramatically up at the sky, tilting his head back and squinting. "I think it's gonna rain." He grimaced, "We're gonna have to stop." Hermione looked at him in panic; if they stopped now they weren't going to move on again until morning, and the forest floor wasn't exactly where she planned to spend the night. She swallowed hard, taking a deep breath.

"Don't be ridiculous." She announced matter of factly, "A few drops never hurt anyone." He opened his mouth to argue but she marched on forward with determination, past the indignant looking Malfoy.

However, it looked like she had been wrong.

The rain poured down, crashing onto them like waves. Hermione's clothes, hair and boots were soon soaked through. She could barely stand straight as the wind whipped around her, blowing her thick, bushy hair into her face and making it impossible to see.

"A bit of rain never hurt anyone?" screamed Malfoy sarcastically. He reached forward, taking her arm, and pulled her roughly to the side. "We are finding shelter, right now!" Hermione looked forward anxiously but had to accept that Malfoy was probably right. There was only rain and fog in the distance and she could barely see the muddy ground let alone any sort of destination.

"Fine!" She glared at him angrily and nodded towards some trees. "How about over there?" Draco turned and looked at the forest some way behind him.

"Fine." And, growling with frustration he headed off in the direction of the trees without so much as looking at Hermione. She followed behind him, fuming.

By the time they had reached the trees the pair were soaked through to the bones. Her normally bushy hair was plastered to her face in long, wavy strands; Hermione was still furious. Draco, looking not much better was in a similar mood. They stumbled up towards a large oak tree, whose branches spread out among the other trees, creating a lattice of leaves that provided some protection from the thunderstorm ahead. Hermione flung herself against the bark, refusing to look at Draco. He followed suit, leaving a stony silence, interrupted by their involuntary shivers and chattering of teeth.

Huddling down, Hermione slowly reached into her back pocket and drew out her wand. Seeing her, Draco made a starting motion but she simply scoffed at him and pointed it at some branches lying across the forest floor.

"Incendio!" Instantly, bright golden flames sprung up, unaffected by the wet wood or drops of water splashing onto them from the canopy above. The warmth drew some blood back into her numb fingers and Hermione inched closer, allowing it to flow over her. She tugged off her wet boots, throwing them aside and moaned gratefully as the flames warmed her. Pulling her wet hoody off she placed it gently over a branch to dry. Draco had moved closer when the flames had appeared and he flung himself down next to her. He too pulled off his shoes and shrugged off his jacket then, feeling a prickly feeling, Hermione looked up to find him staring at her. He was frowning slightly and looked uncomfortable. "What?" Hermione demanded and he started, as if distracted. Muttering under his breath he turned away and thrust his thin navy jumper at her. Catching it in surprise Hermione looked down to find that her white vest top had gone wonderfully see-through. Biting back a groan she quickly pulled it on and inched closer to the fire, desperate to hide her glowing cheeks.

They sat like this for a while as the night grew steadily cooler. It was pitch black now and the forest was alive with the sounds of the fire crackling, the wind and rain howling through the trees and the occasional sounds of an animal or rustle of bushes.

"Malfoy?" Hermione spoke suddenly, her voice sounding oddly loud amongst the quiet forest. He looked at her scowling. Her voice faltered slightly, "What, what exactly is the plan now?" He glared again, then spoke shortly, "We find help. Anyone, so long as they're wizards." He paused for a moment. "The death eaters didn't want anyone knowing about this attack. They caught us unguarded and undefended, we need to find out what's happening."

"And what about your father? Isn't he one of the death eaters?" Draco looked up sharply and glared at her so hard that she leaned back a little in surprise. "My father isn't clear where he stands at the moment, thanks to you and your idiotic friends." He looked so angry. "He's currently locked away in Azkaban so you'd better keep your filthy little mudblood tongue quiet and not mention him again!" Hermione bristled angrily. "Your father deserved everything he got and more! And you call me a mudblood one more time you _insolent_ little toe-rag, and I'll hex you to Norway and back!" For a moment they glared at each other in furious silence then Draco sprang up.

"Try me!" He had his wand out but so did Hermione. She was up on one knee, her wand pointed directly at his chest whilst he stared squarely down at her. Abruptly jumping up, she screamed "Densaugeo!" whilst at the same time he yelled "Furnuculus!" A wave of heat hit her and instantly large, green boils started to spring up on her hands, arms and face. She reeled back in disgust and looked up to find Draco laughing hard at her, his hands shaking in glee. But all of a sudden he stopped, and then fell back horrified, as his front teeth began growing at tremendous speed.  
"Granther!" He cried out furiously, "Do somethingk!" But Hermione was too busy laughing, doubling over in mirth. "Granther!" His teeth were reaching his chest now, and showed no intention of stopping. Recovering finally, Hermione walked up to him.

"You promise to undo this curse?" Draco glared daggers at her but, unable to speak, nodded reluctantly. "And never, ever use the M word again?" His eyes narrowed and he tried to protest but was chocked back instantly by his teeth which were consuming his entire mouth and weighing his head down. He nodded again, groaning with the effort of carrying his enormous teeth and, grinning, Hermione pointed her wand at him and muttered the counter-curse. The teeth instantly stopped trying to reach the floor, and began to decrease back into this mouth, reverting back to their original size. When they were normal she stopped them and then waited expectantly. The boils were covering almost every inch of unconcealed skin, and were now starting to pop and bubble ominously. He glared at her furiously, his cheeks still flushed with indignation. Looking her up and down he smirked. "You look hideous Granger."

Spreading her arms out impatiently she waited. "Well?"

He considered for a moment then folded his arms and smiled."I don't think so; this is a big improvement on the normal sight." Hermione raised her wand threateningly and he blanched.

"Fine! Fine." Sighing he pulled out his wand and murmured the counter curse. The boils hissed and then popped, exploding in a disgusting murky goo which covered Hermione head to foot. She groaned in revulsion at the green, stinking mucus all over her hands and arms. Draco exploded into laughter again, choking in his glee and she sat down furiously, refusing to even look at him and trying desperately to ignore the sounds of his obvious amusement.

**Sorry it's been a while, exams and whatnot. Let me know what you guys think! And any suggestions on how you think the story should go are most welcome (I've got a rough idea but that's all atm). Not sure when the next chapter will be up but in the meantime have a good week and good luck with any exams! **


	4. Chapter 3 12

**Just an update to the end of chapter 3. I will start chapter 4 soon, this is more to finish it off nicely :)**

"You sicken me Malfoy." He just smirked smugly a she siphoned the goo off with her wand.

"You're one to talk, Granger." She scowled as his grin grew wider.

"Well, I'm going to sleep!" Hermione curled up in ball, her back facing him, and huddled close to the fire, trying to find comfort in the earthy floor. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep but all she could hear was the sounds of the forest; birds shrieking, the fire crackling, Draco's breathing, loud against the night. Eventually she felt him lie down next to her, the earth shifting with his weight. Peeking through her arms she saw that he was about a meter away, facing away.

She studied his back, the shirt having dried rough, was pulled taut across his skin. Of all the people to have been stuck with: why him?

He was one of the most selfish, shallowest people she'd ever met.

He sucked up to those in power, followed his parents' ideals to the letter, and never even had the presence of mind to question anything. If it worked for him, he didn't need to rock the boat. He liked his power, he liked putting others down, and he liked to hide behind those who were bigger than him, and pick fights with those smaller. And now she was stuck with him.

Hermione groaned, oh why couldn't it have been Harry? Or Ron? Even Ron would have been better. When she wanted to strangle _him_ at least it was partially in affection, with Draco it was just in anger. It really would be _much_ more bearable if Ron was here instead.

She shook her head and closed her eyes, images of Ron brewing in her mind, and Draco's his form faded into darkness as Ron's face swam in her mind. The way he laughed really was rather lovely. And he had such a nice smile, such a strong grin. Her breathing slowed and soon she was asleep. The night passed quickly, and slowly the chill in the wind disappeared, and it grew warmer as the sun made an appearance through the clouds. The ground was moist with dew and the animals began to stir, as the forest came alive. Hermione stirred.


End file.
